Relevant unomaha.edu links:

Additional resources:

the big picture.

Stella Watts has been named the May Employee of the Month at UNO. Watts is a clerical assistant II in the Human Resources Office at UNO. Look for details in a future edition of eNotes.

On May 9, 1969, UNO students took part in a Ma-ie Day Carnival on the Pep Bowl, which included a dunking tank.

This Week in Campus History

On May 8, 1953, The Gateway reported that a new department and major field of study, library sciences, was now being offered through the University of Omaha (OU) College of Education. OU librarian Ellen Lord headed the new department, which also included two assistant professors - Frank Gibson and Kilbourne Janacek. Library sciences was a 24-credit-hour major and was designed to prepare librarians for placement in either elementary or secondary schools.

While some of his fellow students are still snug in their beds,
Alexander Williams is on campus preparing for the day. It is just one of
many changes he has faced during his transition to student body president/regent
at UNO. ...continue

University of Nebraska Regent Howard Hawks was awarded the Medallion for Entrepreneurship from Beta Gamma Sigma (BGS), the national honor society for higher education business programs, during a ceremony Feb. 8 in Las Vegas. The UNO College of Business Administration (CBA) made the nomination, and Louis Pol - dean of the college - accepted the award on behalf of Hawks.

"Howard Hawks has had a tremendous impact on Nebraska as a business leader, as a civic champion deeply committed to education and as a philanthropist," Pol said. "Nominating him was a privilege for UNO."

Hawks is the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Tenaska Inc., an Omaha-based energy company and the 16th largest privately held company in the United States. Hawks earned his master's of business administration degree from UNO in 1971.

Tenaska is actively engaged in energy development activities within the United States and around the world. Hawks and a small group of associates formed the company in 1987 amidst a newly de-regulated energy market. With Hawks at the helm, Tenaska overcame market risks and has raised $7.8 billion in financing. The company's assets have tripled from $800 million in 2001 to more than $2.6 billion in 2006. In recent years, Tenaska has also expanded its focus to bio-fuels, clean coal generation and coal-to-liquid production of diesel fuels.

In addition to being elected to the University of Nebraska Board of Regents, Hawks also serves as a director for Creighton University. The Hawks Foundation, created in 1994, has funded hundreds of university scholarships. He was inducted into the Omaha Business Hall of fame in 2002.

The Beta Gamma Sigma Medallion for Entrepreneurship has been awarded annually since 1986, and only four were given this year. Established to recognize individuals and firms that contribute significantly to the vitality and strength of the economy, the award honors recipients who combine innovative business achievement with service to humanity.

A reception was held April 25 at the UNO CBA.

For more information, call 554.3502.

SPR Report

The SPR Report details the results of UNO's efforts to obtain external funding in support of its teaching, research, service and outreach efforts. The report is designed to keep the university community informed as to externally funded projects on campus and bring recognition to those faculty and staff who have worked to generate these resources.

For the period of April 5-30, those receiving grant awards totaling $1,753,506 are as follows:

Name: Ronald Abdouch
Unit: College of Public Affairs and Community Service
Title: Neighborhood Center for Greater Omaha
Sponsor: Omaha Community Foundation

Name: Robert Bernier
Unit: College of Business Administration - Nebraska Business Development Center
Title: Small Business Assistance for the State of Nebraska
Sponsor: U.S. Small Business Administration

Name: Paul Sather
Unit: Academic Affairs - Service-Learning Academy
Title: Impact of Student Employment on Students' Responses to the Service-Learning Experience at UNO and the College of Saint Mary
Sponsor: University of Nebraska Lincoln/Midwest Consortium for Service-Learning in Higher Education

Name: Russell Smith
Unit: College of Public Affairs and Community Service - Public Administration
Title: Omaha Neighborhood Scan
Sponsor: City of Omaha

Name: Richard Yoder
Unit: College of Business Administration - Nebraska Business Development Center
Title: PPI 2006 Source Reduction Subcontract
Sponsor: Kansas State University

For assistance with research activities, call the Office of Sponsored Programs and Research (SPR) at 554.2286, or visit the Web at http://www.unomaha.edu/spr/.

Discount Available to Ringling Bros. Circus

UNO faculty and staff are eligible for a ticket discount to several Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey productions of "Bellobration!" at Qwest Center Omaha. Discounted show times are Saturday, June 9, at 3:30 p.m. or Sunday, June 10, at 1 p.m.

According to the circus flier, "Bellobration!" is a hair-raising circus celebration, where comic daredevil Bello and his fantastic friends from "The Greatest Show on Earth" throw a party that cannot be topped.

The discounted price for the June 9 and 10 productions are $17 (regularly $20), $12 (regularly $15) and $7 (regularly $10).

Three options are available to receive the discounted ticket price: in person, by phone or online. Click on the link below for details and to obtain a copy of the promotional flier. To have a flier faxed to your office, call 554.2358.

Where on campus are faculty and students studying the dynamical aspects of human movement? The answer lies within the Biomechanics Lab in the UNO School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation (HPER).

The lab - directed by Nick Stergiou - uses techniques from biology, engineering and mathematics to understand the complexity of the neuromuscular system.

The lab has been full of activity this past year and has added post-doctoral research assistants to its team. To learn more about the lab, read about its recently published 2006 annual report, which is available by clicking on the following link:

All UNO faculty and teaching assistants are invited to attend the annual "Learning Horizons" conference all day Tuesday, May 15, and a half day Wednesday, May 16. "Learning Horizons: Blending Design, Assessment and Technology" is a two-day conference sponsored by the UNO Center for Faculty Development, College of Education, Criss Library, University Committee for the Advancement of Teaching and Information Technology Services (ITS) Academic Partnership for Instruction.

A brief daily synopsis of the conference is highlighted below.

Day 1: May 15Time: 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Location: William H. and Dorothy Thompson Alumni Center
Sessions will be presented by nationally known speakers William Horton and Peggy Maki.

Day 2: May 16Time: 7:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
Location: 109 Durham Science Center (DSC)
The day will begin with registration and coffee in 109 DSC and will feature hands-on workshops in the areas of instructional design, assessment and learning technologies.

TIAA-CREF announces its campus visit schedule for May. A TIAA-CREF representative will be on campus for individual appointments with employees Tuesdays, May 22 and 29.

Appointments for one-on-one counseling sessions can be made by calling Louella Williams at the TIAA-CREF office in Omaha at 548.3610 or visiting the Web at http://www.tiaa-cref.org/moc.

Playaway Audiobooks Available at Criss Library

Playaways are the wave of the future!

Much like an MP3 player, the Playaway Audiobook is a digital audio recording on a self-contained, battery-operated player. Smaller than the average deck of cards and with no CDs or tapes to swap, users can adjust the speed of playback, set multiple bookmarks and view a display showing the time remaining in a chapter.

"These are a great addition to our collection," said Steve Shorb, dean of Criss Library. "They make great walking partners and are perfect for traveling."

Playaways come complete with earbuds, or you may use your own headphones, speakers or car adaptors. If you want to hang the player on a lanyard, there is a small loop that pops out of the narrow end of the player for that purpose.

The library currently has twelve Playaways available (four works of fiction and eight language lessons), which you can find by searching "Playaway" as a keyword or subject in the library catalog. One Playaway Audiobook is on display in the library's main entryway.